farmdoc's blog post number 372

When I studied Latin in grades 9 and 10, I learnt about ancient Rome and its patricians and plebeians. Despite living in modern Mole Creek (oxymoron intended) and not ancient Rome, I’m a plebeian. When it comes to poetry, that is. I’ve never formally studied it, never understood it, and never loved it. But on reflection, poetry’s not an ‘it’, i.e. a monolithic literary rubric. There are a few poets whose poems speak to me. One’s Leonard Cohen. His songs do too, because they’re poems. The same with Emily Ulman’s songs. For sure. Another poet – I think of the non-singing genus – whose poems I’ve enjoyed recently, is the American Ted Kooser, from 2004-6 the 13th US Poet Laureate. The US has annual renewable terms for its Poets Laureate, compared with the UK where for centuries it’s been a job for life – until 1999 when the incumbent was appointed for 10 years. So since 1986 the UK's had only two Poets Laureate compared with the US's 17. I reckon the US system encourages young poets, raises poetry’s profile, and increases poetical diversity. Sweetheart Vivienne tells me life’s hard for emerging prose writers, but their problems are insignificant compared with those emerging poets face. What a pity, because our sick and sorry world needs more poets and poetry. In the USA, April’s National Poetry Month. How wonderful! It’s my cue to put more poetry into my life. I’m starting here. I’ll never be a poetry patrician. But I’ll do what I can.